luckyjune
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,687 
Location: In the rainy, rainy WA
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Post by luckyjune on Nov 21, 2019 2:41:24 GMT
I just saw a specialist in Seattle today and evidently, I have glaucoma. My regular eye doctor didn't catch it because I have the kind where the pressure in my eyes is normal. I have some significant damage to my right eye and I have drops to start using, 2x a day, tonight.
I was a little freaked out as I was leaving the hospital today. I'm young for this (55) and I have to now go on to see a glaucoma specialist. I'm alarmed at the number of conditions that have cropped up in my since I turned 50! Healthy as a horse my whole life, and now???
Thanks for reading. This getting older stuff is for the birds!
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Post by nlwilkins on Nov 21, 2019 3:27:33 GMT
I was diagnosed with Glaucoma in my 40's. It is not necessarily an age thing. I used the drops twice a day for yeas and had visual field tests every year. Ten yeas ago I moved to a town with a major medical center and went to a eye doctor there. They have the up to date machinery and technology to do more than just visual fields. Turns out I did not have glaucoma at all. But, just wanted to let you know that if you follow the doctor's instructions, keep up with your yearly eye exams with the visual fields, etc. you should be OK. The drops lower the blood pressure in the eye which causes damage. So just be sure to keep on your drops. Don't forget to refrigerate the drops also.
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luckyjune
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,687
Location: In the rainy, rainy WA
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Post by luckyjune on Nov 21, 2019 3:45:39 GMT
I was diagnosed with Glaucoma in my 40's. It is not necessarily an age thing. I used the drops twice a day for yeas and had visual field tests every year. Ten yeas ago I moved to a town with a major medical center and went to a eye doctor there. They have the up to date machinery and technology to do more than just visual fields. Turns out I did not have glaucoma at all. But, just wanted to let you know that if you follow the doctor's instructions, keep up with your yearly eye exams with the visual fields, etc. you should be OK. The drops lower the blood pressure in the eye which causes damage. So just be sure to keep on your drops. Don't forget to refrigerate the drops also. I did not know about refrigerating the drops! What does that do? |
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Post by SweetieBugs on Nov 21, 2019 4:28:02 GMT
Were your eyes going milky looking? Did you have symptoms or signs? I have all kinds of problems with my eyes and my vision keep deteriorating (the sharpness and amount of correction I can get from glasses and my vision seems cloudy now) so I'm worried there is something more going on.
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luckyjune
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,687
Location: In the rainy, rainy WA
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Post by luckyjune on Nov 21, 2019 4:43:34 GMT
Were your eyes going milky looking? Did you have symptoms or signs? I have all kinds of problems with my eyes and my vision keep deteriorating (the sharpness and amount of correction I can get from glasses and my vision seems cloudy now) so I'm worried there is something more going on. I had some issues with peripheral vision on the inner edge of my right eye. I asked my regular eye doctor about it and he ran a few tests. He said my optic nerve was a funny shape, which meant off to the specialist! I did not have cloudy vision (although the doc today told me that I have cataracts in both eyes too...but that is corrected with lasik, so no more glasses! |
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Post by stampinchick on Nov 21, 2019 4:56:01 GMT
Last year during my regular eye exam my eye doctor noticed that the pressure in both of my eyes was high. I was 53 at the time. He didn't want to take any chances, so he sent me to a specialist. He also got readings showing the pressure was high in both eyes. And he found that my corneas are thin. I had a laser procedure done to both eyes rather than having to use the drops. He said the procedure will probably last about 10 years and the cost wouldn't be much more than the cost of drops for 10 years. The pressure came down after the procedure but the specialist said I need to come back every year for a follow up with him in addition to my regular exam with my eye doctor. When I went for the one year follow up the pressure was a bit high in my one eye again so I had to go back in 3 months. That time I had good readings in both eyes. But now I have to see the specialist every 6 months so he can monitor them more closely. Of course I have the specialist co-pay of I think $75 and I just got my last bill for $150 in addition to the co-pay. Not sure what my insurance next year will be like, but having over $400 in fees to the eye specialist every year isn't going to be fun.
You might want to ask your specialist about the laser procedure.
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Post by nlwilkins on Nov 21, 2019 7:17:31 GMT
I was diagnosed with Glaucoma in my 40's. It is not necessarily an age thing. I used the drops twice a day for yeas and had visual field tests every year. Ten yeas ago I moved to a town with a major medical center and went to a eye doctor there. They have the up to date machinery and technology to do more than just visual fields. Turns out I did not have glaucoma at all. But, just wanted to let you know that if you follow the doctor's instructions, keep up with your yearly eye exams with the visual fields, etc. you should be OK. The drops lower the blood pressure in the eye which causes damage. So just be sure to keep on your drops. Don't forget to refrigerate the drops also. I did not know about refrigerating the drops! What does that do? The drops I used needed to be refrigerated to keep their potency |
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